July 2012

July 31, 2012

The Royal New Zealand Ballet opens its run of Christopher Hampson's Cinderella on Thursday in Wellington. Following performances through August 11, the company takes the production on a month-long tour throughout the country. Designer Tracy Grant Lord has updated the costumes and added 90,000, yes 90,000 Swarovski crystals to Cinderella's tutu. Young Lucy Green, who joined the company in 2010, carries the weight of those crystals and the weight of performing the title role on opening night. We'll try to find some performance photos.

Photo Ross Brown

Oh, gosh, Haglund just noticed that RNZB's heartthrob, Sergio Torrado, has left the company. Perhaps he would like to come here and dance with our Stella again. He could sleep on Haglund's couch - with or without the kitty.

3. Arts competition> Year introduced: 1912> Number of Olympics: 7> Last played: 1948

Beginning at Stockholm in 1912, the Olympics included an arts competition. This was purportedly part of the vision that Pierre de Coubertin, who founded the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 1894, had for the Olympic Games. De Coubertin would later win a gold medal himself, for literature, at the 1912 Games. In 1948, 25 nations sent artists to London to compete in architecture, painting, sculpture, literature and music; this was the last time arts would be featured in the Olympics. As the majority of artists competing were professionals, and the IOC opposed professional competitions at the time, the event was removed.

July 29, 2012

Just hangin' out, restin' up, and gettin' ready for a big new round of complainin' about whatever needs complainin' about. There's always somethin' or other. Always.

In a completely unconnected note, here's a reminder that Smuin Ballet lands at the Joyce Theater August 13 to 18.Tickets are moderately priced at $19 to $49. Smuin had his finger on the pulse of the country for a while; he died in 2007. Many others have copied him over the years and extremed him - it's about time the world of ballet started using the word extreme as a verb - it's so apropos and all that - kind of like a new four-letter word but with more letters. We'll probably never see Smuin's A Song for Dead Warriors again - the Emmy winning ballet he created while he was AD at San Francisco Ballet. It would just make everyone feel too uncomfortable. Why dredge up how offensively we've always treated Native American Indians when we have so many other groups who we're concurrently offending.

July 23, 2012

One minute after ticket sales opened this morning, ABT had - according to the City Center website - sold thousands and thousands and thousands of seats including half of the ADA seats - the same ADA seats for every performance! Yeah. Right.

July 20, 2012

Thank you to the Paris Opera Ballet for six fantastic performances of Giselle that cleansed our balletic spirit and re-calibrated our balletic priorities.

Thursday night, we in New York were privileged to watch Clairemarie Osta's final performance with the Paris Opera Ballet which concluded her 24 year career with the company. She danced the title role of Giselle while her husband, Nicolas Le Riche, was Albrecht. It was a performance of tenderness, purity of form, poetry, and graciousness – a beautiful and honest portrayal from start to finish. Ms. Osta, who is required to retire at age 42 as are all the Paris Opera dancers, clearly is leaving the stage while she still maintains world class technique and artistry. Last night in Act I as Giselle performed her solos with pristine, unexaggerated beauty, Le Riche's face was filled with joy and admiration as he watched her perform them for the last time. Le Riche gave 150% last night. He launched some mighty big cabrioles in Act II, but it was his pleading before Myrtha and his realization of the love he had lost that were heartbreaking. His big turning jumps with the leg in passe followed by a desperate, pleading lunge toward Myrtha were so much more affective in conveying the story than a bunch of entrechats six - but not really as dramatic as the flying brises down the diagonal that some of our own great Albrechts in New York employ.

The Wilis were again astonishing in their beauty. However, they got off to an uncertain start when a line of the Wilis had their veils pulled off several counts too early. One of the things that Haglund loves about this staging is how during the iconic Wili scene when they step into arabesque, step back into tendu, and then circle around themselves, they do not jump the last move as is commonly seen in other stagings. Instead they simply step around silently and then slowly peel the front foot off of the floor. Anyone with a foot fetish was living his dream to see all of the Wilis peel their identically beautiful feet off the floor with such perfection. Then after they dispatched poor Hilarion, they exited with the traditional jete combination in small groups. Where this became extraordinary was in the manner that the Wilis walked up to prepare to exit on their high 3/4 releves - true 3/4 releves. It is so wonderful to see this kind of care taken with such simple steps. To see ALL of the Wilis perform this identically just added to their "spook factor" and made them look like they were under Myrtha's spell.

One of the greatest delights of the last two performances was the soloist Yann Saiz as Hilarion. He's a terrific actor with a formidable stage presence. His Hilarion was convinced up to the bitter end that he could win Giselle back. Haglund was rooting for him the whole time, but unfortunately it ended the way it always ends - poor Hilarion got thrown into the drink by the Wilis. Saiz already has the Etoile factor. The audience eye tends to gravitate toward him whenever he's on stage. While there never is a lot of flashy technique required of Hilarion, Saiz showed brilliance, clarity, and drama in his saute fouettes and jetes among the Wilis. It's going to be hard to wait to see him again, just as it's going to be hard to wait to see Axel Ibot, the young coryphee who was an eye catcher in the Peasant PdD. Ibot, however, doesn't always have control of his energy and enthusiasm which results in some precarious finishes. He's hard not to love, though. Yann Saiz and Axel Ibot – remember those names!

Last night's Myrtha, Nolwenn Daniel, did a fine job as did Laura Hecquet the evening before. Both possessed more authority than Emilie Cozette's Myrtha earlier in the run, although Cozette's performance improved tremendously from her first Myrtha to her second to her third. Ms. Daniel and Ms. Hecquet got their details and energy in place on their first and only outings.

It may be unique to ABT that Myrtha can be as important or even more important a performance than Giselle and Albrecht simply because ABT has such enormously talented dancers in the role. The Myrthas as performed by Veronika Part, Stella Abrera, and Gillian Murphy have become their own reasons for us to purchase tickets and are criteria for selecting which performances to attend. Not so with other companies including the Paris Opera Ballet where Myrtha claims her traditional importance but not more.

Thursday evening Dorothée Gilbert and Josua Hoffalt danced Giselle and Albrecht. Ms. Gilbert was a much more "knowing" Giselle and much more sophisticated in the art of flirting with Albrecht than the other Giselles. Her technique was so solid and so unflappable that it was somewhat difficult to imagine Giselle as frail or fragile. When dancing with her partner it seemed that she was of the upper class whereas he was more of a commoner. It's not that Hoffalt danced badly; he did not. But he was not at the level of Gilbert and did not have the elegant lines of Matthew Ganio, the batterie and turns of Karl Paquette, or the dramatic abilities of Nicolas Le Riche. Nor did it seem that there was much natural chemistry between Gilbert and Hoffalt.

Act II of the Gilbert/Hoffalt performance was very enjoyable. Ms. Gilbert's upper body was extremely expressive. Her lovely, long neck bent from side to side and convinced us she was otherworldly. Her arabesques perched on balance but still breathed beautifully. Her rapid-fire bourrees in parallel as she backed away from Albrecht were the fastest bourrees that Haglund has ever seen – and they were silent.

This week of Giselles made it feel like New York finally got the classical ballet that it had been waiting for all year. With a bit of rest, Haglund would be ready for another week of Giselles by the Paris Opera Ballet. It has been quite the privilege to see this wonderful company these past two weeks, and we should all hope that the company returns as soon as possible.

The final Pump Bump Award, a little Louboutin gold, is bestowed upon Clairemarie Osta for granting us the opportunity to see her final and penultimate career performances - both of which were highlights of the company's visit. Hopefully, Ms. Osta understood that the flower tossers last night were accustomed to calibrating their throws for the Met Opera House. (Flowers are rarely thrown in the Koch Theater.) Consequently, the flower pitches did not always complete their arcs over the orchestra pit. But enough of those flowers landed at her feet so that she certainly understood New York's gratitude.

ABT is sending around a self-congratulatory letter with the fall season brochure which boasts that its Met Season ticket sales were $243,000 more than last year. Well, hello?! They had MORE performances this year than last. In 2011 there was no 4th of July performance. The ole math don't look so great now, dood it?

By adding that extra performance, they only got an additional $243,000? Why is anyone bragging about that?

Maybe some of the core audience isn't ballet alert enough to catch this but most everyone else will either figure it out or read it here and then claim that they figured it out.

July 17, 2012

Aurélie Dupont and Mathieu Ganio were spectacular tonight - as was the entire company! If you have not seen the Paris Opera Ballet's Wilis yet, you have only two more chances. Tonight after the Wilis big moment in Act II, it appeared like we might have one of those Juan Diego Florez La Fille Du Regiment moments at The Met Opera House when the audience demanded that Juan deliver the high Cs again. The audience roared for the Wilis and those ladies deserved every decibel.

July 15, 2012

The Paris Opera Ballet brought to New York a program and style that clearly said, "This is who we are." Compare that to the recent visit by the Australian Ballet which brought a program and style that mostly said, "This is sort of how we hope to be viewed." Compare that to the non-identity of American Ballet Theatre which currently cries out, "Whatever you're buyin', we're sellin'."

The moment the Paris Opera Ballet opened its first performance, it was evident just how serious the institution is about fashioning its art in the proper form. In this mix & match world where plaids, stripes, and polka dots can all randomly appear on the same sleeve, the Paris Opera Ballet has said, "Hold on a minute - not here. Are those seams straight? Are those stitches perfectly even? Is the fabric high quality? Does it fit properly?" Rarely have we in New York seen a ballet company that is so happily obsessed with the quality of what goes into its artistic product. The corps de ballet alone has spoiled Haglund for all other companies for eternity. Going forward, every time he sees a hometown dancer's feet strapped into a pair of Gaynor Minden clogs or a dancer who cowardly refuses to fully break the shanks sufficiently below the heel, he's going to remember the beautiful Paris Opera Ballet dancers whose perfectly arched feet were as identical as their Wili costumes. At the Paris Opera Ballet, there is a singular shape of tendu, one version of sous-sus in fifth, one courageous commitment to the French form.

For the first three performances of Giselle – three more to come next week – the Paris Opera Ballet presented Giselle as many here had not seen before. Some of the artistic choices within the production may have seemed at odds with what we have been accustomed to seeing, but the choices were not faults. They were artistic choices. It was the choice of the Paris Opera Ballet for Giselle's jumps to remain modest - more joyous than athletic. It was the choice of the Paris Opera Ballet to retain modesty in the speed of the chaine turns. Even in Giselle's solo in Act I, the rond de jambe from side to front that we are accustomed to seeing begin with a big battement was danced by the French as a very low rond de jambe.

Much of the New York audience has been treated of late to the McDonald's version of Giselle with its grandiose vaulting, and now the audience expects and wants the high fat content at every meal. Well, the reality is that McDonald's french fries are not really French food. The fact that this production of Giselle may not have been what one was accustomed to doesn't mean that it was bad or wrong. It was different. Maybe New York should diet away some of the Bolshoi fat so that it can appreciate the leanness of the French.

The Act I costumes were exquisitely beautiful and unfussy. Soft color palettes of pale pink and slightly stronger yellows with blue accents were used for the peasants and friends. Giselle's Act I dress was traditional blue. On the opening night, the naturally glamorous Aurelie Dupont wore her sleeves immodestly pulled down to completely bare her beautiful shoulders. In the second performance, Isabelle Ciaravola's sleeves were technically off the shoulders but not by very much. In the third performance, Clairemarie Osta's sleeves were modestly in place at all times. This might be used to characterize the performances themselves. Ms. Dupont was elegant and beautiful almost to a fault. Much of the time during Act I she seemed more royalty than peasant which may explain why her handsome Albrecht, Mathieu Ganio, was so attracted to her in the first place. Ms. Ciaravola's Giselle in Act I was more youthful, even playful to Karl Paquette's somewhat serious Albrecht. Ms. Osta's Giselle in Act I was fragile, innocent, delicate, modest while her Albrecht (and husband in real life) Nicolas Le Riche was a teaser who knew he could win the game at any time he wanted.

When Giselle initially bumped into Albrecht and then turned her back and slowly walked away, in two of the performances Albrecht walked up closely behind her and nudged Giselle's shoulder with his own as though he were initiating his play with her. It was an example of subtle artistry that made a big impact.

Another artistic choice which Haglund loved was when everyone's motion froze for several notes of music while Giselle contemplated and then came to the realization that what Hilarion had told her about Albrecht was true. You need only recall an instance in your own life when the trauma was so great that time stood still in order to understand what Giselle experienced in those moments.

In the three Giselle performances so far, the Act I scene where Giselle has a breakdown and dies of a broken heart has been played subtly and without histrionics. Clairemarie Osta's character mentally and physically crumbled before our eyes, breaking our hearts along the way. She didn't have to tear her hair out or run around with her mouth hanging open like Osipova does in order to convey the tragedy. Ms. Ciaravola's mad scene was slightly less touching while Ms. Dupont's was less than convincing. It's the beauty factor.

Act I was packed with more dancing by the corps de ballet than other versions with which we might be more familiar. When the ballet opened, the peasants didn't come strolling or running on to the stage; they came dancing. Duos and trios danced meaningful phrases of choreography that conveyed the spirit of the villagers through the formidable technique of the corps dancers. They also had significant and very fast ensemble work within the Peasant PdD which we don't generally see in versions of Giselle in New York. It enhanced the Act I significantly.

The Peasant PdD was the "advanced-professional" version with variations that were nearly as technically demanding as those of the principals: double tours with one leg in passe that immediately segued into a straight leg grand jete - done in a circle. Try it. Some of the men in the Peasant PdD fared better than others with this. The young Coryphée Axel Ibot, dark and handsome with a winning smile, eagerly grabbed onto the opportunity. He'll definitely be remembered the next time the Paris Opera Ballet comes to town. All three women in the Peasant PdD danced capably enough to step into the role of Giselle. The emboite to the knee/pirouette phrases that can be troublesome in the Peasant PdD were error free and embellished by beginning each phrase with an arabesque plie with the momentum moving backward.

Act II opened in the dead of night with five shadowy guys with lanterns engaged in a game of dice at the edge of the cemetery road across from Giselle's quite elaborate grave stone and cross. It was so great to see this theatrical moment which created an almost Dickensian atmosphere where one could clearly hear the dice being shaken and rolled.

Another lovely moment was when Albrecht initially arrived, he wrapped his cape around the foot of the cross as though he might wrap it around Giselle to keep her warm in the cold night.

Whereas so many traditional stagings of Giselle use the Wilis mostly in lines and in circles, this staging utilizes Romantic groupings of four or five Wilis around the stage throughout the act as well as the lines and circles. When Giselle first arrived, she didn't just come walking out from the wings as in several other productions. The Wilis were closely hunched over her grave and they then peeled away to reveal that she had risen up from that grave and was standing in front of her cross.

The PdD and variations were all very traditional and beautifully danced by all three couples. All three Albrechts lifted their Giselles over their heads with no trouble whatsoever. Why do the American principals who dance Albrecht have such trouble with this? Clairemarie Osta's variation seemed the most ghost-like of the three although all performed remarkably. Perhaps it was because her movements - entrechats quatre, sautes passe, bourrees – were not only very fast but also were very compacted. Aurelie Dupont's Act II Giselle was far superior to her Act I. Both she and Isabelle Ciaravola seemed better able to embody the spirit of Giselle rather than play her living character.

The Myrtha character was the greatest departure from what we usually see. The three dancers who performed the role did so nearly identically so one must assume that the character's rather slow bourrees and less than maximum height on many jumps were artistic choices. It was pretty thrilling, however, to see Marie Agnes Gillot suddenly rocket through the trees into the middle of the stage for her final variation.

Albrecht's Act II variations were traditional. On opening night we were treated to some squeaky-clean entrechat sixes from the most Romantic and physically blessed of the three Albrechts, Mathieu Ganio. At the second performance, Karl Paquette was well past 32 entrechat sixes before he finally collapsed from exhaustion. At the third performance, Nicolas Le Riche – 40 years young – wisely substituted some fantastic jetes down the diagonal while pleading for his life in front of Myrtha. He then topped those off with eight entrechat sixes instead of continuing with the more dramatic jetes. That was perhaps the only poor artistic choice of the evening because those entrechats six seemed obligatory.

Another artistic choice which was interesting to see came at the very end after Giselle had bourreed off. Albrecht lay down at the foot of the grave in the fog as if asleep and then suddenly woke up as if this had all been his dream. Nicolas Le Riche ended by unwrapping his cape from around the foot of the cross after which he walked to the front of the stage, peered out for a moment, turned, and walked back upstage with his head hung in sorrow. All three Albrechts were quite fine, but Le Riche touched the heart just a little bit more - as did his Giselle, Clairemarie Osta.

The orchestra sounded thin and chamber-like at times. The cellist was awful the first night, bad the second performance, and not so great at the third one.

The stage was slightly cramped. The scenery is by design much more into the middle of the stage than, say, ABT's is on the Met stage. We could actually see inside the house on the right. Also Giselle's grave and cross were more out from the wing which created some traffic issues for the Wilis. Their back line had to dance behind the cross, and when it came time for Hilarion to be tossed into the drink, he had to step carefully around the cross in order to get out.

Those Wilis were the most beautiful Haglund has ever seen. They are now the gold standard, and even though the principals were incredibly fine, the Wilis brought the production to its highest level and therefore are awarded the coveted Pump Bump Award, aptly entitled The Pain of Love:

July 13, 2012

Just a reminder that the Kickstarter campaign for the Barba/Pellerito documentary about Marcelo Gomes is still in full swing and needs a boost to reach its ambitious goal by August 3rd @ 9:00 am EDT.

The clip on the Kickstarter page includes footage (well, actually inch-age) of Marcelo and Veronika Part in Swan Lake. We need to see this preserved and expanded since it appears we may never again see them dance together in this particular ballet. Just another thing to complain about on a hot, muggy Friday the 13th.